Introduction

© 2001 AOA, Chicago, IL, USA. All Rights Reserved.

If you’re like most people, you’ve been going to a doctor ever since you were born, and perhaps were not aware whether you were seeing a D.O. (osteopathic physician) or an M.D. (allopathic physician). You may not even be aware that there are two types of complete physicians in the United States.

The fact is, that both D.O.s and M.D.s are fully qualified physicians licensed to perform surgery and prescribe medication in all 50 states. Is there any difference between these two kinds of doctors? Yes. And no.